New Brix Chocolate Pairs Perfectly With Wine

Wine Has Finally Met Its Chocolate Match With Brix

A few months back, while attending the San Francisco Chocolate Salon, I discovered Brix, a new line of chocolates designed specifically to be paired with wine. I was impressed by how the chocolate stood up to even the boldest of reds, so when PartySugar and I learned Dr. Nick Proia, the founder of Brix, was in town to host a chocolate and wine pairing, we couldn't wait to scope it out. The wine and chocolate extravaganza was held at the Winery Collective, a new multi-winery tasting room in San Francisco that's focused on California's boutique vineyards. There, Proia, a practicing pulmonologist from Ohio, shared the story behind Brix. After deciding cheese and wine pairings were less than heart-healthy, the lifelong wine lover turned to pairing chocolate with wine, only to find few chocolates made a good match. From there, his determination to discover a perfect pairing got him into the chocolate business. Learn what we thought of the tasting when you

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Brix blends single-origin chocolate from Ghana with fine Belgian chocolate to create eight-ounce milk, dark, and extra-dark chocolate "bricks" ($12.95) to be chiseled off and consumed with various wines. The high cocoa content of the milk chocolate means it tastes luscious and addictive, with a creaminess to contrast the tannins in Pinot Noir. The sumptuous medium dark chocolate was our favorite, enhancing the raspberry jam notes of a fruit-ripe Lake County Zinfandel. And the intense, concentrated chocolate flavor of the extra dark brick is a great foil for an ultra-sweet Calaveras County vintage port.

Are you a fan of pairing wine with chocolate? Have you ever sampled Brix chocolate?